The woman claimed the hospital had given her child to someone else...

In her complaint, the woman accused hospital staff of giving her son to other parents. However, both hospital staff and management refuted her claims.

In a meeting with the new mother, the hospital's management team explained that hospital staff often use gender neutral phrases when briefing parents about their infants.

After long negotiations, the woman finally backtracked on her claim and decided to take her newborn girl home.

She also withdrew the legal complaint filed against the hospital and medical staff.

"There is this pressure, especially when a woman is pregnant with her first child, for it to be male"

In a statement to StepFeed, Lamis, a Saudi social worker who often works on cases related to new mothers in the kingdom, explained that while it isn't widespread, the phenomenon of families favoring boys over girls isn't uncommon.

"Unfortunately, even though we've advanced greatly in recent years, to many families in the kingdom, boys are still more favorable than girls. There is this pressure, especially when a woman is pregnant with her first child, for it to be male. This is because we live in a patriarchal society that always tends to put men above women. I've come across so many cases when expecting mothers were put under extreme pressure just because they were pregnant with girls," she explained.

When asked about the Ha'il woman's case in specific, Lamis added:

"She might've been under similar familial pressure, so desperate for her child to be a boy. That might also explain the denial she was in even after doctors reassured her she had given birth to a girl. I personally think that is what happened here."